The meeting will also feature the International Conference on G20 Trade Finance Cooperation

Mumbai, the commercial capital of India, is all set to host the first Trade and Investment Working Group (TIWG) meeting under India’s G20 Presidency from March 28−30, 2023.

This three-day meeting will witness the participation of over 100 delegates from G20 member countries, invitee countries, regional groupings, and international organizations to discuss ways to accelerate global trade and investments.

As part of the TIWG meeting, an International Conference on ‘Trade Finance’ will be held on the first day, March 28. This is being organized by the Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India (ECGC) and India EXIM Bank. The conference will discuss the significance of trade finance in supporting economic growth and maintaining international trade flows.

The conference aims to deliberate on action-oriented solutions to reduce the trade finance gap and make it accessible by harnessing the potential of digital tools and technology. It will hold two sessions.

While the first session discussed the role of banks, financial institutions, development finance institutions, and export credit agencies in closing the trade finance gap, the second session will delve into how digitalization and fintech solutions can improve access to trade finance, especially for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

Some of the key discussions during the first session will be around the current trends in international trade and trade finance amidst the pandemic, the causes of trade finance gaps, and the role of export credit agencies in bolstering trade finance.

On the other hand, the second session will discuss the need for digitalizing trade finance, the scope of digitalization of MSMEs, and the emerging solutions in financial technologies, such as network data, real-time payment behaviors, SaaS-based technologies, and optical character recognition.